Dykumism
This belief system is followed primarily by the Sand Dancers. It is believed that goal of life is to reach enlightenment, and while enlightenment involves prayer and dedication to the gods, there are infinite paths to reach it through everyday actions. If one dedicates themselves to their job and their tribe and the spirits, they can reach enlightenment. Of all the creatures in the world, only the Dovasi and the sand dragons can reach enlightenment. In this way, sand dragons are considered their brothers. Although the sand dragons are very important to their way of life and considered sacred, they are not worshiped as gods. They are steeped in mysticism and are considered the children of the sun, splinters of the broken sun that landed in the desert and continue to roam the sands. They are greatly respected creatures and each tribe is devoted to protecting one specific sand dragon. Many other animals, such as the corrigan, are sacred animals to the Dancers. Creation Story They believe the world began as a vast expanse of earth with only sky above. It used to be very bright and blinding light. Many creatures lived in the sky and on the earth, but they feared the bright light and burrowed into the earth, living in caves and hiding. A few would emerge into the world above to check if the light was still there. These creatures returned touched by the light, with pieces of them that glowed. After a time, the animals got tired of hiding and formed a plan to shoot down the light. They threw handfuls of earth at the light source and while it wasn’t enough to destroy it, they slowly chipped off pieces of it until it was very dim and they could all come out of the caves. The bright splinters they chipped off fell to the earth in the form of the sand dragons. They wanted to destroy the creatures that had separated them from their home and began digging and searching for the animals, using bright light from their bellies to scare them away. the sand dragons digging shaped the mountains and valleys of the earth and when they had exacted their revenge on some of the animals, they came together to live in one place. Here the Shivering Desert was formed from their persistent digging. The corrigans, were the only creature not afraid of the dragons, as they blended in so well with the earth and made barely any noise when they moved, the dragons couldn’t find them. They are considered very brave and unforgiving creatures. The korry is another sacred animal, though it is not native to the deserts. It is a trickster animal, known for being very clever. It crafted armor against the sand dragons, and used it sheer numbers to outwit the larger creatures. The Dovasi came into being long after the desert had been created, XXX. Values Values typically support those of their culture, family first, conservation, and life as important, but as these are shared throughout all aspects of life, they are not strictly tied to their religion. Each deity might have slightly different additional values to each individual, as it is a very open and unstructured religion. History The Sand Dancers have always, longer than they can remember, kept stories through oral stories and through carvings on Amberglass pillars and shards. Deities They worship the moons as their parents. The Tower moon is liken to the father and the Temple moon the mother, though there are no set genders used for either. They are not, however, very communal worshipers, and most give praise in their own ways, though there is wide mutual respect for each individual's way of worship. Some pray daily, some make art as praise, some hunt, some have personal rituals. There are other fringe deities or strong spirits, typically related to an element of the world and often given familial names. Not all tribes worship these spirits to the same degree and even within a tribe, an individual may have strong ties to one spirit the tribe does not. Holidays Tribes take time to celebrate the dragons on the days of the red moons. They prepare a feast for the tribe and their shaman’s summon the dragons at a distance where live prey has been left for the beast. Each member of age takes a turn at tossing chunks of food the the dragons. If the dragon catches it, they are considered to have good luck, if the dragon eventually finds and eats it, they are at least favored, but if the dragon fails to find it, they are considered unlucky. These moments are used to commune with the dragons, to imprint their scent on the beasts and show their predatory nature and good will toward them.